# Pot and Re-Pot, how do you know? Green-thumbs welcome. **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 13, 2010, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-and-re-pot-how-do-you-know-green-thumbs-welcome/546540 "2010-07-13T15:54:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Phlosphr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Phlosphr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phlosphr)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2010, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-and-re-pot-how-do-you-know-green-thumbs-welcome/546540/1 "2010-07-13T15:54:53Z")
\*Not a medical marijuana thread. I am currently running an experiment with my house plants. I have several large Pothos, philodendron and Dracana around the house, they all seem to be doing quite well. I have one Pothos that is completely root bound and by the looks of the plant loving every minute of it. However, one common issue I have had over the years is when to re-pot the plants because they are too root bound. Does anyone have a good source or rule of thumb for these particular common house plants? The one pothos who is doing so well is completely root bound and has been for a year. She is growing exponentially and doing very well, this would tell me by pure physical looks that pothos like being root bound. What about the philodendrons? Do they like it as well, as far as I can see they are very prolific but when over watered tend to get a browning of the leaves. When should I repot a common house plant? ---
**Author:** ![Perciful](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b38774/32.png) [@Perciful](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Perciful)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-and-re-pot-how-do-you-know-green-thumbs-welcome/546540/2 "2010-07-14T03:45:12Z")
> [@Phlosphr](#): > > \*Not a medical marijuana thread. > > When should I repot a common house plant? When the roots are coming out of the drainage holes of the pot. The plant will also not flourish once root bound because the soil is depleted. Sometimes if it’s a large plant I will remove it from the pot and cut it in half through the roots with a sharp knife and make two pots from one plant and give away one to a friend. Use good potting soil and how to tell is when you lift the bag if it’s bulky or heavy it’s just top soil. Potting soil should be light and airy. Good Luck. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-and-re-pot-how-do-you-know-green-thumbs-welcome/546540/3 "2010-07-14T12:20:45Z")
Depends on the plant. Some prefer it – sansevieria and a lot of philodendrons, for instance, don’t really flourish until their roots have filled up the pot. [I’ve had one philodendron](http://i56.photobucket.com/albums/g161/twickster/misc%20shit/IMG_0629.jpg) in the same pot for 23 or 24 years and it’s happy as can be. ---
**Author:** ![Phlosphr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Phlosphr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phlosphr)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-and-re-pot-how-do-you-know-green-thumbs-welcome/546540/4 "2010-07-14T15:56:16Z")
Great photo Twicks - wow, mine looks like a pup compared to that one! 🙂 I’ll leave them be and watch and see how they do over the next year! Thanks all! ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-and-re-pot-how-do-you-know-green-thumbs-welcome/546540/5 "2010-07-14T17:26:32Z")
My rule of green thumb is if I suspect it being root bound and it looks pathetic, re-pot. If it seems happy, like Twix’s monster, leave 'er be. I’ve had good luck with houseplants for years. ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-and-re-pot-how-do-you-know-green-thumbs-welcome/546540/6 "2010-07-14T17:50:12Z")
Yep - there are lots of plants that like to be stuffed right in their pots and lots that like a bit of space. If you notice that leaves are getting pale or falling off in greater numbers, or you plant generally seems unwell despite you doing all the usual things, repot it. I have a lovely avocado that I started from a pit and it was looking a bit under the weather - sure enough it’s roots were coming out the bottom of it’s pot so bad I had to smash the pot off it to move it. I did that and now it’s happy as a clam. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Dogzilla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@Dogzilla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dogzilla)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-and-re-pot-how-do-you-know-green-thumbs-welcome/546540/7 "2010-07-14T19:46:49Z")
> [@twickster](#): > > Depends on the plant. Some prefer it – sansevieria and a lot of philodendrons, for instance, don’t really flourish until their roots have filled up the pot. [I’ve had one philodendron](http://i56.photobucket.com/albums/g161/twickster/misc%20shit/IMG_0629.jpg) in the same pot for 23 or 24 years and it’s happy as can be. Huh. I have four of those in my backyard. Not in pots; just planted in the ground. They flourish just fine after outside temps reach a certain point. Actually, I think it’s the ground temp that has to be consistently about 65º every day and _then_ they flourish. I have no idea how to deal with philos as houseplants. They’re tropicals; this is a subtropical climate… keeping one indoors is sort of like keeping a tiger in a cage as a pet, to me. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-and-re-pot-how-do-you-know-green-thumbs-welcome/546540/8 "2010-07-14T19:58:04Z")
Is that a single plant, Twicks? What do you feed it, ground up sock puppets? ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-and-re-pot-how-do-you-know-green-thumbs-welcome/546540/9 "2010-07-14T20:20:56Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Is that a single plant, Twicks? What do you feed it, ground up sock puppets? She feeds it posters — particularly carnivorous ones — who ask too many questions. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-and-re-pot-how-do-you-know-green-thumbs-welcome/546540/10 "2010-07-14T20:43:04Z")
> [@Ellen\_Cherry](#): > > She feeds it posters — particularly carnivorous ones — who ask too many questions. 😉 Do your jackboots need shining, Ma’am? ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-and-re-pot-how-do-you-know-green-thumbs-welcome/546540/11 "2010-07-14T23:30:04Z")
Heh. Yes, that’s a single plant – well, a single pot, anyway, there are a bunch of stems. And since I live way up yonder in zone 7, I like having a nice jungle thing happening in my bedroom all winter. I do nothing but water it once a week, and feed it … um, once a year, maybe? It does spend the summer out on the front porch, which seems to keep it happy. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [July 14, 2010, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pot-and-re-pot-how-do-you-know-green-thumbs-welcome/546540/12 "2010-07-14T23:44:42Z")
> [@twickster](#): > > And since I live way up yonder in zone 7 [That](http://www.plantmaps.com/interactive-pennsylvania-usda-plant-zone-hardiness-map.php) little bitty strip of civilization so close to frigid New England! It looks like several plants in the pot, though.